Gujarati films are getting bigger and better. And even as the local film industry churns out more movies than ever and the cinematic canvas expands with filmmakers travelling the length and breadth of the state to find suitable locations for their films, what continues to be missing is a centralized space (read a film studio) where parts of the films can be shot in absence of a suitable real location. In absence of a studio, filmmakers tend to shoot the entire film on real locations, be it indoor shots or outdoors. This not only involves a lot of research for finalizing the suitable locations, it also means going through the tedious task of getting the right permissions.Any shooting schedule in a city typically demands permission from the municipal office, traffic police (if the shoot is done on city roads), and other authorities depending on the location. And even though real locations do bring in an element of authenticity that is hard to recreate on a set, there are challenges aplenty too.

And shooting in a studio has its own advantages. There is always the issue of safety when shooting outdoors. Apart from that, when shooting in a studio, you can control the environment, light, sound and even the actors would feel more comfortable.“

REAL LOCATIONS MEAN AUTHENTICITY

Despite all the challenges, many industry insiders feel that shooting on real locations is a lot better that shooting in a studio. It not only brings the element of authenticity, it also gives a unique look to the film, which is what every filmmaker strives for. Even actors feel shooting on real locations is a better bet than canning the shots in a studio. Actor Tushar Sadhu, who shot extensively in Ratanpur district for his upcom
ing film Ratanpur says, “Real locations have a charm of their own. The look and feel you get on real locations can't be created in a studio. And even for actors, even though it is quite challenging and tiring at times to shoot in real locations, it's more fun.“ Even Supriya Pathak, who shot in Ahmedabad for her latest Gujarati film, agrees. She says, “It might be easy to go to a film studio and shoot, but you can't recreate the same feel that you get on a real location. We shot in a house of a middle class family with all real props. That is hard to match. It feels like a real house, that essence can never be created in a set.“

Even as the local film industry feels lack of studios pose challenges for filmmakers, most D-Towners are in a no complain mode and are making the most of the available resources.